Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-01-25
Purity ef the Baiiot.


that an honest effort on the part OF a
candidate, who presents facts showing
very clearly that he was defeated in
his election by tricks and frauds,
shOu Id be met by sneers, persifiage
and abuse from papers that pretend,
in = general way, to uphold the puri-
ty OF the ballot. Every honest lover
Of our institutions ought to encourage
such effort when made in good faith.
To meet the sneers Of the Times, In
its illusions to the contest COM
menced by Joseph d. Lynch for the
seat in Congress from this district
claimed by VIM. VaRdever, and also
to give the people OF this district an
idea of the peculiar practices which
result ted in the latter gentleman get
ting his certificate by plurality o.
fifty-five votes, We publish elsewhere
= copy of the counts upon which Mr..
Lynch Is contest is based. We shall
here ly discuss some Of the leading
articles in this indictment; but. be-
fire doing SO, We wish to say that the
contestant has clear right, as a can
didate and citizen, to make the is
sue, and that right none can deny or
belittle without accepting the Slterna-
tive that they are afraid justice will
be done. Ii, as the contestant be-
1ieves, and is willing to show by ire
fragable proofs, the wishes of the peo-
pie OF this Congressional district have
been thwarted by illegal practices
and indefensible election tricks, he
would not only be recreant to his
party. but to the people and institu-
lions of our country,if he did mott
steps to achieve the seat to which he
would have been entitled by pure
ballot and a fair count. When news
papers meet this kind OF effort by
ro'dy assault and the clamor OF the
drab, they give themselves away in a
double sense-as trifiers with the
dearest rights of the citizen and
as en- emies OF the purity OF elections.
1t has been we'll said heretofore that
this contest will not be decided by
new spaper trial. Yet it is not an ele-
waiting thought in journalism that a
que stion of SO great moment cannot
even have fair presentation, much
less fair trial, by newspapers claim
ing to be honest and respectable. Let
us see whether the allegations Of fact
in this case are not such as should be
sifted and gravely considered. Mr..
Lynch charges that the precincts in
this city we're so gerrymandered by
Republican officials as to make it i'm
possible for an elector to vote in the
White House precinct without stand
ing in line at least 40 minutes. The
Supervisors could not plead ignorance
OF the crowded character OF this pre-
Gin ct, for the fact had been signally
called to their attention by a delega-
tion of respectable Democrats at the
time they were setting off the city
precincts. The Supervisors knew it
was q strong Democratic precinct, for
everybody knew that. They could
have cut it up so as to have facilitated
the voting. They also knew that not
to subdivide it would result in shut
ting ont a great many voters from ex-
ercising the franchise. And they
knew. finally, that the voters that
would be shut out would be princi-
pally Democratic. Now what conclu-
sion follows from all that? Simply
this-that for a partisan advantage
the machinery of the election was un-
scrupulously and wrongfully availed
Of by Republican officials. They had
the power. and they exercised it. Is
this not proper matter to be urged in
a contest? And if it is, in what atti-
tude does public journal stand that
tries to beaittle it?
Next we come to that curious phase
in the political history of the last
election by which great number OF
legal voters were arbitrarily disfran-
chised in this city by the hocus-pocus
OF registration. The County Clerk
advertised that registration would
close on the I'd OF October. This
oGicial announcement was considered
hnal BY many who had failed to get
their names on the register before